The One Minute Entrepreneur: The Secret to Creating and Sustaining a Successful Business [Hardcover]

Ken Blanchard (Author), Don Hutson (Author), Ethan Willis (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 29, 2008

Mega-bestselling author Ken Blanchard and celebrated business leaders Don Hutson and Ethan Willis present an inspiring story that reveals the secrets to becoming a successful entrepreneur.

In THE ONE MINUTE ENTREPRENEUR, Ken Blanchard (coauthor of the #1 bestselling business classic The One Minute Manager), Don Hutson, CEO of U.S. Learning, and Ethan Willis, CEO of Prosper Learning, tell the inspiring story of one man’s challenges in creating his own business. Through a powerful and engaging narrative, we confront many of the typical problems all entrepreneurs face in starting up their business, from finding new sources of revenue to securing the commitment of their people and the loyalty of their customers. More important, we learn the secrets to becoming a successful entrepreneur, including how to build a firm foundation, how to ensure a steady cash flow, and how to create legendary service. In addition, the book offers invaluable advice, delivered through One Minute Insights, from such entrepreneurs and thinkers as Sheldon Bowles, Peter Drucker, Michael Gerber, and Charlie “Tremendous” Jones.

Today, in the midst of the largest entrepreneurial surge in U.S. history, four out of five small businesses continue to fail. THE ONE MINUTE ENTREPRENEUR offers businesspeople and would-be entrepreneurs a treasure trove of wisdom on how to think, act, and succeed in creating and sustaining a business, no matter what their industry.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Advance Praise for The One Minute Entrepreneur

“Ken Blanchard, the master storyteller and brilliant consultant/trainer, focuses his unique wisdom and keen insights on helping entrepreneurs achieve enduring success. Another grand slam!”
- Stephen R. Covey, author, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People and The 8th Habit: From Effectiveness to Greatness

“Ken Blanchard invented the art of business fables, and he and his co-authors have written another winner.  This is a wonderful mix practicality and entertainment.  A quick, must read for anyone with an inkling for going out on their own, and probably just as relevant for readers interested in personal and professional improvement.” 
-- Patrick Lencioni, president, The Table Group; author, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team.

“Don Hutson and Ken Blanchard have done a beautiful job teaching the essence of entrepreneurship.”
-Zig Ziglar, author and motivational teacher

“Filled with gems of wisdom. Read it if you’re serious about reinventing your life.”
—Mark Sanborn, president, Sanborn and Associates, and author of The Fred Factor and You Don’t Need a Title to Be a Leader

“There is much said about stewardship in life and business…however, the greatest stewardship is of influence. The One Minute Entrepreneur will teach you the importance of influence and inspire you to choose mentors wisely.”
—Jim Amos, chairman emeritus, UPS

“We each have a lot more to learn and a lot more to teach. The One Minute Entrepreneur will help you do both.”
—R. Brad Martin, chairman of the board, Saks Incorporated

“The One Minute Entrepreneur will help you understand that while success might be easier said than done, focusing on a few essentials will dramatically increase your probability of success—and help you have fun doing it.”
—Michael E. Gerber, entrepreneur and author of The E-Myth, The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Fail and What to Do About It, and Awakening the Entrepreneur Within

About the Author

Ken Blanchard is an internationally bestselling author and motivational speaker whose books have sold more than eighteen million copies in thirty languages. He lives in San Diego, California.

Don Hutson is the CEO of U.S. Learning, a training firm that delivers innovative, high-impact solutions to improve learning in organizations. An active speaker, Hutson was on the founding board of the National Speakers Association and served as its third president. He is the author of several books and lives in Memphis, Tennessee.

Ethan Willis is the CEO of Prosper Learning, Inc., a winner of Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year award and a global leader in entrepreneurial coaching, with more than 150,000 students in seventy-six countries. He lives in South Pasadena, California.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 160 pages
• Publisher: Crown Business; 1 edition (April 29, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385526024
• ISBN-13: 978-0385526029
• Product Dimensions: 5.8 x 0.8 x 9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (40 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #112,908 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Awful, Blanchard really phones this one in., July 25, 2008

By 

R. Edwards (Durham, NC) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The One Minute Entrepreneur: The Secret to Creating and Sustaining a Successful Business (Hardcover)

Compared to some of his previous books this one really disappoints. The story is told as a hokey narrative (as is Blanchard's style) of the hapless protagonist as he struggles to start his career in sales and then start his own business. It quickly dissolves into a shameless ad for a half dozen or so motivational speakers and fellow authors. Very little meat on the bone. Each chapter ends with a list of a few folksy hints and tips our hero learns, but they are often not well developed or supported in the story and add little to this boring shallow book. Pass on this one. For a good getting started in business story with better take-aways read Maverick: The Success Story Behind the World's Most Unusual Workplace by Ricardo Semler.

27 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Weak, May 17, 2008

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M. Davis - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The One Minute Entrepreneur: The Secret to Creating and Sustaining a Successful Business (Hardcover)

The stories in this dreadful One Minute tome are told in a way that isn't realistic. People don't just don't speak like the characters in this weak, so-called helpful book for entrepreneurs do.

But nevermind that.

I read The One Minute Manager 14 years ago and I recall enjoying it and coming away with a couple of pointers. Maybe I was not only younger but more easily impressed then. If you must read this hokey book, and you find it as boring and unhelpful as I found it, then at least save yourself some time and skip to the end of each chapter where you'll find such gems of advice as "Ambition is the fuel that can drive life-changing events." Or, "If nobody will pay you to do what you love, you have a hobby, not a career." I kept waiting for there to be something better, but it didn't come.

Just watch the video above. I think it speaks for itself. The author's trying really hard to sell you on this unhelpful book.

This book is about Common Sense 101: work hard, keep the cash flowing, strive for balance in your life, and treat others with respect.

Maybe All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten would be more apt of a guide. I'd follow one point of advice from that book regarding 1-minute Entrepreneur:

Flush.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Flat, traditional, and sickeningly 'wholesome', June 5, 2008

By 

Jacob Hart (Norman, Oklahoma) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The One Minute Entrepreneur: The Secret to Creating and Sustaining a Successful Business (Hardcover)

I understand that this is supposed to be a "parable," but I find the characters one-dimensional and difficult to identify with. There is a traditional, conservative thread running throughout the book -- Jud is very, very much a down-home, clean-cut type. He marries (of course), has two children (of course), and ends up creating a corporate culture that includes the typical terminology we're all so sick of -- "contact with the customer" is relabeled as "moments of truth," the company's philosophy is centered around some acrostic of the words "I CARE," and so on.

I couldn't quite finish this book, short though it was. There were some pieces of wisdom that may or may not be obvious ("play to your passion," "listen to others," "don't be afraid to ask for help"), but overall, I found the characters and story to be too flat and smarmy to endure. The book seems to be a poor approximation of life. I like the fact that the authors made an attempt to put their advice into context by forming a story around it, but the entire book is unrealistic.

Jud and Terri are not like real people. I couldn't identify with them. The whole adventure reads like a "family-values" sitcom written by conservative businessmen.